Across the country, overdose prevention centers continue to face pushback, most recently in New York City. Plans to open Rhode Island’s first supervised consumption site for illegal drugs in 2024 are proceeding cautiously. Health reporter Lynn Arditi talked with The Public’s Radio Morning Edition host, Luis Hernandez, about what’s at stake in Rhode Island.
Lynn Arditi
Lynn joined The Public's Radio as health reporter in 2017 after more than three decades as a journalist, including 28 years at The Providence Journal. Her series "A 911 Emergency," a project of the 2019 ProPublica Local Reporting Network, won the Scripps Howard National Journalism Award in the radio/podcast category in 2020.
A native of New York City, she graduated from Oberlin College and landed her first journalism job at The Center for Investigative Reporting (now known as Reveal) in Washington, D.C., where she did story development for 60 Minutes. When the T.V. market imploded in 1987, the D.C. office of CIR closed and within a year she moved to Massachusetts to take a reporting job at the former Holyoke Transcript-Telegram, a small daily newspaper.
A year later, she moved to Providence, R.I. to work at The Providence Journal. There, she worked for several years as a bureau reporter covering schools and local issues, before she began covering statewide beats including higher education, the economy, housing and health care. During those years, she also honed her skills in narrative journalism, and served as chairwoman of the newspaper’s writing committee. Her work has been recognized by New England Associated Press News Executives Association and the Society of American Business Editors & Writers.
Lynn is mom to two sons and lives in Barrington with her husband and their dog.
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A ‘Dignity Bus’ from Florida arrives in Woonsocket, R.I. to shelter people who are homeless
A coach bus retrofitted with sleeping pods this week rolled into Woonsocket, R.I. The city bought the ‘Dignity Bus’ from a Florida nonprofit for $150,000 to help house people who are homeless. Health Reporter Lynn Arditi takes us inside. This story was produced for the ear. Please click the button above to listen. The transcript […]
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Author interview: A journalist’s search for a relative who escaped the Holocaust unearths a secret some want to forget
Hena Rozenka was 16 when gunmen burst into the farmhouse in Poland where she and her family had been hiding from the Nazis. On this night in 1944, the men carrying long guns murdered them all – except for Hena, who escaped. Journalist Judy Rakowsky, deploys the investigative skills she honed during her years at […]
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RI communities get millions in opioid settlement funds. But who knows how they’re spending it?
More than $10.5 million has flowed into Rhode Island cities and towns so far from legal settlements with opioid manufacturers, distributors and sellers with no explicit requirements that the municipalities publicly report how the money is spent. The direct payments to cities and towns are part of nationwide settlement agreements with companies like Johnson & […]
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Woonsocket to buy the `Dignity Bus’ homeless shelter after deal with state fell apart
The City of Woonsocket plans to buy a $150,000 bus retrofitted with beds for people who are homeless after Rhode Island’s deal to buy the “Dignity Bus” from a Florida-based nonprofit fell through. The Woonsocket City Council unanimously approved a resolution Tuesday to enter into a contract with The Source, a Christian-based nonprofit, for a […]
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Woonsocket officer disciplined for wrongful arrest of homeless Liberian immigrant
A Woonsocket police detective who oversaw an investigation that resulted in the wrongful arrest and incarceration of Mack Blackie, a 35-year-old homeless Liberian immigrant, has been suspended without pay for 10 days and demoted to patrol officer. Timothy M. Hammond “failed to follow standard investigative procedures which ultimately led to the improper arrest of Mr. […]
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R.I. lawmakers weigh stricter gun storage requirements
Rhode Island is considering legislation to enact one of the country’s strictest firearms storage laws
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Rhode Island’s first safe consumption site for illegal drugs slated for early 2024
Rhode Island became the first state to legalize supervised drug consumption sites in 2020, but finding an affordable location delayed its launch.
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EXPLAINER: How will the battle over abortion pills impact Rhode Island?
Health reporter Lynn Arditi explains what’s at stake and what Rhode Islanders need to know.
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Updates on coronavirus in RI and MA
For information about COVID-19 vaccinations visit C19vaccineRI.org. A list of Rhode Island’s state-run test sites and their holiday hours is available here. The Latest For a more complete archive of updates on coronavirus, click here.